A Multi-Streamline Approach for Upcycling PET into a Biodiesel and Asphalt Modifier.

The non-degradable nature of petroleum-based plastics and the dependence on petroleum-based products in daily life and production are dilemmas of human development today. We hereby developed a plastic waste upcycling process to address these challenges. A multi-stream fraction strategy was developed to process poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) plastics into soluble and insoluble fractions. The soluble fraction was used as a sole carbon source for microbial fermentation to produce biodiesel precursor lipids with an appreciable bioconversion yield. The insoluble fraction containing fractionated polymers was used as the asphalt binder modifiers. The downsized PET additive improved the high-temperature performance of the asphalt binder by 1 performance grade (PG) without decreasing the low-temperature PG. Subsequent SEM imaging unveiled alterations in the micromorphology induced by PET incorporation. Further FTIR and 1H NMR analysis highlighted the aromatic groups of PET polymers as a crucial factor influencing performance enhancement. The results demonstrated the multi-stream fraction as a promising approach for repurposing plastic waste to produce biodiesel and modify asphalt. This approach holds the potential to tackle challenges in fuel supply and enhance infrastructure resilience to global warming.

NDV inhibited IFN-ß secretion through impeding CHCHD10-mediated mitochondrial fusion to promote viral proliferation.

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) is an RNA virus that can promote its own replication through the inhibition of cellular mitochondrial fusion. The proteins involved in mitochondrial fusion, namely mitofusin 1 (Mfn1) and optic atrophy 1 (OPA1) are associated with interferon-beta (IFN-ß) secretion during NDV infection. However, the precise mechanism by which NDV modulates the Mfn1-mediated or OPA1-mediated fusion of mitochondria, thereby impacting IFN-ß, remains elusive. This study revealed that the downregulation of the mitochondrial protein known as coiled-coil-helix-coiled-coil-helix domain containing 10 (CHCHD10) exerts a negative regulatory effect on OPA1 and Mfn1 in human lung adenocarcinoma (A549) cells during the late stage of NDV infection. This reduction in CHCHD10 expression impeded cellular mitochondrial fusion, subsequently leading to a decline in the activation of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), ultimately resulting in diminished secretion of IFN-ß. In contrast, the overexpression of CHCHD10 alleviated infection-induced detrimental effect in mitochondrial fusion, thereby impeding viral proliferation. In summary, NDV enhances its replication by inhibiting the CHCHD10 protein, which impedes mitochondrial fusion and suppresses IFN-ß production through the activation of IRF3 and NF-κB.

Mitochondrial protein CHCHD10 inhibits NDV replication and reduces pathological changes.

Newcastle disease (ND) is a disease that threatens the world's poultry industry, which is caused by virulent Newcastle disease virus (NDV). As its pathogenic mechanism remains not fully clear, the proteomics of NDV-infected cells were analyzed. The results revealed that coiled-coil-helix-coiled-coil-helix domain containing 10 (CHCHD10) protein displayed a significant decrease at the late stage of NDV infection. To investigate the function of CHCHD10 in NDV infection, its expression after NDV infection was detected both in vivo and in vitro. Besides, the tissue viral loads and pathological damage of C57BL/6 mice with CHCHD10 differently expressed were also investigated. The results showed that the CHCHD10 expression was significantly decreased both in vivo and in vitro at the late stage of NDV infection. The viral loads were significantly higher in CHCHD10 silenced C57BL/6 mice, along with more severe pathological damage and vice versa.

Protective effects of a novel chimeric virus-like particle vaccine against virulent NDV and IBDV challenge.

Newcastle disease (ND) and infectious bursal disease (IBD) pose significant threats to the chicken industry, causing substantial economic losses. Currently, immunization through vaccination is the most effective strategy to prevent ND and IBD but currently used traditional vaccines, including inactivated or attenuated vaccines, face challenges in achieving a balance between immunogenicity and safety. To develop a green and efficient novel vaccine for ND and IBD, we developed a bivalent chimeric virus-like particle vaccine (ND-IBD cVLPs) displaying the ND virus (NDV) HN protein and the IBD virus (IBDV) VP2 protein based on the ND VLPs carrier platform and insect baculovirus expression system. This study aimed to evaluate the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of ND-IBD cVLPs in specific pathogen-free chickens. Chickens were immunized with 50 µg of purified ND-IBD cVLPs at 7 days old, boosted at 21 days old, and challenged at 42 days old. The results demonstrated that ND-IBD cVLPs stimulated highly effective hemagglutination inhibition antibody levels against NDV HN protein and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay antibody levels against the IBDV VP2 protein. Furthermore, ND-IBD cVLPs provided complete protection against virulent NDV and IBDV challenges and mitigated pathological damage to the lung caused by NDV infection and the bursa of Fabricius caused by IBDV infection. These findings suggest that ND-IBD cVLPs hold promise as a safe and efficient novel vaccine candidate for the effective prevention of ND and IBD, extending the development of a foreign protein delivery platform of ND VLPs.

Transcriptome-wide N6-methyladenosine modification profiling of mRNAs during infection of Newcastle disease virus in chicken macrophages.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification, the most prevalent post-transcriptional modification of eukaryotic mRNAs, is reported to play a crucial role in viral infection. However, the role of m6A modification during Newcastle disease virus (NDV) infection has remained unclear. In this study, we performed MeRIP-seq to investigate the transcriptome-wide m6A methylome and m6A-modified genes in NDV-infected chicken macrophages. A total of 9496 altered peaks were identified, of which 7015 peaks were significantly upregulated across 3320 genes, and 2481 peaks were significantly down-regulated across 1264 genes. Combined analysis of m6A peaks and mRNA expression showed that 1234 mRNAs had significantly altered levels of methylation and expression after NDV infection, and m6A modification tended to have a negative relationship with mRNA expression, suggesting that m6A modification may regulate the process of NDV infection by regulating gene expression, particularly of the genes important in the innate immune response. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive characterization of m6A patterns in chicken macrophage mRNA after NDV infection, providing a valuable basis for further exploring the role of m6A modification mechanisms during the course of NDV infection.

Feedstock design for quality biomaterials.

Feedstock design is crucial for lignocellulosic biomass use. Current strategies for feedstock design cannot be readily applied to improve the quality of biomass-based materials, limiting the sustainability and economics of lignocellulosic biorefineries. Recent studies have advanced the understanding of biomass structure-property relationships and discovered several characteristics, such as molecular weight, uniformity, linkage profile, and functional groups, that are critical for manufacturing diverse quality biomaterials. These discoveries call for fundamentally different strategies for feedstock development. Such strategies need to rediscover the roles of monolignol biosynthesis enzymes and leverage lignin polymerization enzymes to achieve precise control of lignin molecular structure. These innovations could transform biomass into feedstock for high-quality biomaterials, addressing essential environmental challenges and empowering the bioeconomy.

Therapeutic Effects of the In Vitro Cultured Human Gut Microbiota as Transplants on Altering Gut Microbiota and Improving Symptoms Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a brain-based neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by behavioral abnormalities. Accumulating studies show that the gut microbiota plays a vital role in the pathogenesis of ASD, and gut microbiota transplantation (GMT) is a promising technique for the treatment of ASD. In clinical applications of GMT, it is challenging to obtain effective transplants because of the high costs of donor selection and heterogeneity of donors' gut microbiota, which can cause different clinical responses. In vitro batch culture is a fast, easy-to-operate, and repeatable method to culture gut microbiota. Thus, the present study investigates the feasibility of treating ASD with in vitro cultured gut microbiota as transplants. We cultured gut microbiota via the in vitro batch culture method and performed GMT in the maternal immune activation (MIA)-induced ASD mouse model with original donor microbiota and in vitro cultured microbiota. Open field, three-chamber social, marble burying, and self-grooming tests were used for behavioral improvement assessment. Serum levels of chemokines were detected. Microbial total DNA was extracted from mouse fecal samples, and 16S rDNA was sequenced using Illumina. Our results showed that GMT treatment with original and cultured donor gut microbiota significantly ameliorated anxiety-like and repetitive behaviors and improved serum levels of chemokines including GRO-α (CXCL1), MIP-1α (CCL3), MCP-3 (CCL7), RANTES (CCL5), and Eotaxin (CCL11) in ASD mice. Meanwhile, the gut microbial communities of the two groups that received GMT treatment were changed compared with the ASD mice groups. In the group treated with in vitro cultured donor gut microbiota, there was a significant decrease in the relative abundance of key differential taxa, including S24-7, Clostridiaceae, Prevotella_other, and Candidatus Arthromitus. The relative abundance of these taxa reached close to the level of healthy mice. Prevotella_other also decreased in the group treated with original donor gut microbiota, with a significant increase in Ruminococcaceae and Oscillospira. The present study demonstrated that GMT with in vitro cultured microbiota also improved behavioral abnormalities and chemokine disorders in an ASD mouse model compared with GMT with original donor gut microbiota. In addition, it significantly modified several key differential taxa in gut microbial composition.

Bioinspired Immobilization of Glycerol Dehydrogenase by Metal Ion-Chelated Polyethyleneimines as Artificial Polypeptides.

In this study, a novel, simple and generally applicable strategy for multimeric oxidoreductase immobilization with multi-levels interactions was developed and involved activity and stability enhancements. Linear polyethyleneimines (PEIs) are flexible cationic polymers with molecular weights that span a wide range and are suitable biomimic polypeptides for biocompatible frameworks for enzyme immobilization. Metal ion-chelated linear PEIs were applied as a heterofunctional framework for glycerol dehydrogenase (GDH) immobilization by hydrogen bonds, electrostatic forces and coordination bonds interactions. Nanoparticles with diameters from 250-650 nm were prepared that exhibited a 1.4-fold enhancement catalytic efficiency. Importantly, the half-life of the immobilized GDH was enhanced by 5.6-folds in aqueous phase at 85 °C. A mechanistic illustration of the formation of multi-level interactions in the PEI-metal-GDH complex was proposed based on morphological and functional studies of the immobilized enzyme. This generally applicable strategy offers a potential technique for multimeric enzyme immobilization with the advantages of low cost, easy operation, high activity reservation and high stability.